Tofu Wednesday - Tom Yum Squid & Tofu Soup

Tofu Tuesday had to be put on hold as I was out for a curry. I didn't want to miss a Tofu Tuesday as it's good to keep up the momentum, so here it is... on Wednesday.

My previous recipes used Mori-Nu tetrapak firm silken tofu so it was time to branch out. I used
fresh regular tofu, which came in a plastic tub covered in water, obtainable from Chinatown. It was quite a different texture to the Mori-Nu stuff; the texture was a bit rougher, but it was still fragile and care needed to be taken in handling it.

I had limited supplies in the fridge and I didn't want to buy more, as I'm on holiday for a week on Saturday. I made do with what I had in the fridge and freezer: coriander, spring onions, green beans and squid. The obvious choice would be a stir-fry but a touch boring, no?

Soup is a good way to show off the tofu - it takes on the flavour of the broth well, and provides a contrast in textures.

Tom Yum Squid & Tofu Soup

For One

300mls stock (I used a chicken stock cube)
3 slices of galangal
2 sticks of lemongrass, white parts only
50gr dwarf beans, sliced into 2cm pieces
About 100gr tofu
About 100gr squid, scored and chopped into large pieces
3 kaffir lime leaves
2 red birds eye chillis
Small bunch of coriander, roughly chopped
2 stalks of spring onion, sliced
1 lime
2 tbsp fish sauce
2 tsp Nam Prik Pao (a smoky chilli sauce)

Simmer the stock with the chillies, galangal and the lemongrass for 20 mins. Sieve the stock to get rid of the bits. Add the dwarf beans and simmer for a further 7 mins, adding the tofu after about 4 mins. Add the squid and the lime leaves roughly torn, bring to the simmer and take it off the heat. Stir in the Nam Prik Pao (I use Pim's recipe, which you can find here). In your bowl, add the juice of one lime and the fish sauce. Pour the soup into the bowl, toss the spring onions and the coriander on top. It's a spicy soup, so reduce the Nam Prik Pao or don't add the chillis to the stock if you can't take the heat.

The squid, lime leaves, galangal and lemongrass all came from the freezer. It's handy to go to the Oriental supermarkets to stock up on these things, as they last forever in the freezer. I can't really think of anything to replace the lime leaves, they are really essential and they lend a great fragrance. I served this with a pile of white rice to spoon the soup over. I think to date this had been one of the most successful Tom Yum soups I've made. To my knowledge the squid and the tofu aren't traditional, but they made for a very delicious and healthy soup.